Sap-bucket cover.



G. W. ALDERMAN. SAP BUCKET GOVER- APPLIOATION PILED'FEB.13, 1912.

Patented Mar. 25, 1913.

It: I :1; i:

CGLUMIIA PLANouRAPN CO..WA8llINuToN. D. c.

GORIDON WILLIAM ALDERMAN, OF WINDSOR, OHIO.

SAP-BUCKET COVER.

, Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 25, 1913.

Application filed February 13, 1912. Serial No. 677,337.

To alt whom it may concern Be it known that 1, Common W. ALBER- MAN, ofWindsor, in the county of Ashtabula, and in the State of Ohio, haveinvented a certain new and useful Improvement in Sap-Bucket Covers, anddo hereby declare that the following' is a full, clear,

and exact description thereof.

Sap buckets are hung from the tree by' the sap spout, and the pivotalconnection with the tree thus afiorded is utilized for the emptying ofthe sap into the collecting bucket by catching the sap bucket at thebottom and swinging it upon its pivotal connection with the spout, onehand being utilized to swing the bucket, and the other to hold thecollecting bucket. The important requirements in a practical andeflicient cover, are, first, that it will exclude from the sap rainwater, (which, if it gets into the sap requires prolonged boiling forthe evaporation of the water, and, therefore, increases the cost), andalso prevent the entrance of leaves and other debris or dirt thatdiscolor the sap by darkening it and thus impairs its selling qualities,for clean maple syrup is known to look like, or substantially like,white clover honey, which appearance is thus made the test of high grademaple syrup; and second, ease of ma nipulation to uncover the sap bucketwhen it is to be emptied, and no interference with the operation ofemptying it in the manner which has above been pointed out.

In the accompanying drawingsFigure 1 is a perspective view of a sapbucket shown in position for use with a cover embodying my invention;Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view of the cover; Fig. 3 is a vertical sect-ionof the bucket and cover, the full lines showing the cover in bucketclosing position and the dotted lines showing its position at theinstant of swinging the bucket to empty its contents.

The sap bucket 10, shown in the drawings, is of the usual galvanizediron construction, having a wired rim 11 at the top, and just below thetop is a hole to fit over the usual sap spout 12, by which means thebucket is supported and which constitutes the pivotal connection,heretofore described, by which the bucket may be turned for emptying thesap into the collecting bucket. The cover 13 is preferably made of sheetmetal, and where the buckets are made of galvanized iron it will be madeof galvanized iron (but, of course, I do not limit myself to anyparticular material for the bucket) and it is of a diameter slightlylarger than the diameter of the bucket so as to completely cover theexposed top thereof and project slightly beyond the rim. To theunderside of the cover is attached a C-shaped spring Wire 130 which issomething more than a half circle in extent and of such size that itsnugly fits the exterior of the bucket just below the top, the free endsof the spring spreading sufficiently when by a sliding movement thecover is passed to a position to close the top of the bucket, or touncover the same.

In applying the cover, as soon as the free ends of the spring passbeyond the greatest diameter of the bucket, the cover becomesself-locating by the action of the spring, so that its proper bucketclosing position. is certain to be always fixed. The spring connectionthus afforded for the cover is sufii cient to securely hold the covereven when strong winds are blowing, and as the cover fits close againstthe top edge of the bucket, it is'impossible for rain water and otherobjectionable objects or things, such as dry leaves, insects, etc. toget into the bucket. The clamping ring may be attached to the cover in asimple and efficient manner by forming the cover at portions of its rimwith a down turned flange, which flange let is folded about thecontiguous portion of the spring.

On the underside of the cover at a point midway, or substantially midwaybetween the free ends of the spring, I place a hook 15 consisting of apiece of heavy sheet metal that is riveted to the cover, and at thediametrically opposite point of the cover there is an upturned flange 16that forms a handle by which the cover, when in position on the bucket,may be slid ofi from the same until the hook 15 on the underside catchesover the rim of the bucket and forms a pivotal con nection by which thecover may be swung downward to a vertical position to bring the hand atthebottom of the bucket so that with the thumb resting upon the handle16 the fingers can pass beneath the bottom of the bucket. and thus afirm grip obtained on the bucket to tilt or swing it for the purpose ofemptying the sap into the collecting bucket. Should it be desired tobring the hand to any position other than in front, it may be readilydone during the lowering of the cover so that the one continuous motionis necessary. It will be seen that the cover may be moved to uncover thebucket by the use of one hand (and it can be as readily returned tobucket closing position by one hand) and that it not only does notinterfere with the tilting of the bucket to empty it, but it facilitatesthat operation since it provides the means for a firm grip upon thebucket which is required for safe and expeditions pouring of itscontents. No modification of form or structure of the bucket of any kindis necessary for the utilization of my cover. The cover may be perfectlyflat, or if made of sheet metal it may be stiffened, if found desirable,by the well known expedient of corrugating it, the corrugations, ofcourse, being circular.

Having thus described my invention what I claim isl. A sap bucket coverhaving on opposite sides a bucket-rim-engaging projection, and a handle,respectively, the handle being situ ated at the rim of the cover saidrim-engag ing projection being on the underside of the cover and withinthe bucket, and constitut-' ing a pivotal connection of the cover withthe bucket when in engagement with the bucket rim.

2. A sap bucket cover having on opposite sides a bucket-rim-engagingprojection, and a handle, respectively, the handle being situated at therim of the cover said rim-engag-' ing projection being on the undersideof the cover and within the bucket, and constituting a pivotalconnection of the cover with the bucket when in engagement with thebucket rim, and a spring clamp on the underside of the cover to engagethe exterior of the bucket.

3. A sap bucket cover having on opposite sides a bucket-rim--engagingprojection, and a handle, respectively, the handle being situated at therim of the cover said rim-engaging projection being on the underside ofthe cover and within the bucket, and constituting a pivotal connectionof the cover with the bucket when in engagement with the bucket rim, anda spring clamp on the underside of the cover to engage the exterior ofthe bucket and attached thereto by a down wardly projecting flange onthe cover.

l. A sap bucket cover having on its underside a spring, bucket-engagingclamp having separated free ends a distance apart less than the diameterof the bucket, a bucket rim-engaging projection on the under side of thecover midway betwen said free ends and constituting a pivotal connectionbetween the cover and the bucket when said projection engages the bucketrim, and a handle on the upper side of the cover at the edge thereofdiametrically opposite the location of said rim-engaging projection.

In testimony that 1 claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand.

CORIDON WILLIAM ALDERMAN.

\Vit-nesses V. L. FoR'rNEY, NELLIE ALDERMAN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patent

